Tokyo Haneda slot - how will Virgin Operate it?

[hugamuga]

last week I completed my status run from Perth (to Tokyo). I had fun but I can't imagine anyone seriously taking that routing in buisness class for any other reason.

Final routing ended up being PER-MEL-CNS-HND-CNS-MEL-PER I was delayed a day coming back due to cyclone airport closure. they also changed my connecting flights to go through melbourne instead of sydney which shortened the layovers significantly which was helpful.

On the way to Tokyo they changed the aircraft on the redeye from Perth to a 737-700 without buisness so I asked for an earlier flight to Melbourne where I stayed the night.

I found the new buisness seats significantly more difficult to sleep in than the older ones because the headrests don't hold as much weight and straighten out with pressure. I think if I ever did it again I would also avoid the bulkhead as I found the legroom pretty tight (at least for how I sleep).

I am curious as to whether the economy seats would be better for sleeping in, as I have previously found VA economy seats fairly decent for sleeping.

The buisness class cabin was full on both legs between CNS-HND, and PER-MEL but there was a few free both times on the MEL-CNS legs. I was pretty sad to miss out on the Bento box option on the way to Tokyo (I was asked 6th and everyone else had requested it), but fortunately I got it on the return.

The return trip was far more exhausting than I expected, after getting basically no sleep on the HND-CNS segment doing the Cairns terminal transfer and sitting in the domestic terminal for 3 hours before another almost 8 hours of flying was super draining.

I was very tempted at Haneda after the flight was cancelled to see if I could cancel the entire return portion of the trip and instead book an award seat on ANA direct to Perth, it looks like there is good avalability for buisness class award seats from Japan to Perth/Sydney but they are only making them avaliable a few weeks in advance.

DSC Credits were posted correctly for MEL-CNS-HND-CNS-MEL, but for some reason PER-MEL, MEL-PER segments came through as 80SC each (when they should be 105SC) and DSC didnt post. No idea whats going on there but I guess I would need to get in to contact with VA to rectify?

 

[PERLHR]

last week I completed my status run from Perth (to Tokyo). I had fun but I can't imagine anyone seriously taking that routing in buisness class for any other reason.

Final routing ended up being PER-MEL-CNS-HND-CNS-MEL-PER I was delayed a day coming back due to cyclone airport closure. they also changed my connecting flights to go through melbourne instead of sydney which shortened the layovers significantly which was helpful.

On the way to Tokyo they changed the aircraft on the redeye from Perth to a 737-700 without buisness so I asked for an earlier flight to Melbourne where I stayed the night.

I found the new buisness seats significantly more difficult to sleep in than the older ones because the headrests don't hold as much weight and straighten out with pressure. I think if I ever did it again I would also avoid the bulkhead as I found the legroom pretty tight (at least for how I sleep).

I am curious as to whether the economy seats would be better for sleeping in, as I have previously found VA economy seats fairly decent for sleeping.

The buisness class cabin was full on both legs between CNS-HND, and PER-MEL but there was a few free both times on the MEL-CNS legs. I was pretty sad to miss out on the Bento box option on the way to Tokyo (I was asked 6th and everyone else had requested it), but fortunately I got it on the return.

The return trip was far more exhausting than I expected, after getting basically no sleep on the HND-CNS segment doing the Cairns terminal transfer and sitting in the domestic terminal for 3 hours before another almost 8 hours of flying was super draining.

I was very tempted at Haneda after the flight was cancelled to see if I could cancel the entire return portion of the trip and instead book an award seat on ANA direct to Perth, it looks like there is good avalability for buisness class award seats from Japan to Perth/Sydney but they are only making them avaliable a few weeks in advance.

DSC Credits were posted correctly for MEL-CNS-HND-CNS-MEL, but for some reason PER-MEL, MEL-PER segments came through as 80SC each (when they should be 105SC) and DSC didnt post. No idea whats going on there but I guess I would need to get in to contact with VA to rectify?

Thanks for that report. So would you think that row 2 is better than row 1 on the max? Did the footrest help? Glad you got home from rather wet Queensland!

 

[hugamuga]

Thanks for that report. So would you think that row 2 is better than row 1 on the max? Did the footrest help? Glad you got home from rather wet Queensland!

I think it would be for me but YMMV. the foot rest was kind of fun but not particularly comfortable for the way I sleep, but I can certainly imagine it being helpful especially for people who are shorter. I found putting the provided pillow behind my back made the seat a lot more comfortable as it became vaguely like a very angled lieflat, the best part of the new seats for me was the power port and laptop slot under the armrest.

 

[keitherson]

Thanks so much for your detailed review! I was considering using expiring FFC's on CNS-HND or vv but was a bit concerned about the recliner experience for this long a flight!

 

[twiningb]

Maybe, they're more interested in connections to/from their own network than sharing revenue with partners, along with strong O/D traffic.

They do still fly to Taiwan (TSA) and Seoul (GMP), but obviously not to the long haul hubs, just the "NE Asia" city airports. And for the ARN, IST, VIE maybe the economics just don't stack up any more, as they need to fly 20-30% greater distance to Europe now than previously. As for AKL they do codeshare on NZ (or I guess could serve via SYD connections).

Also ARN will cease to be a Star hub when the AFKL purchase of SK goes through.

 

[stm1sydney]

I priced from Perth. Next year. ANA direct 787 10,000 AUD in biz. Going around the country in 19 hours via BNS and CNS 2,500 AUD in VA Biz (mostly MAX operated flights). . Plenty of Status points for the money. I'm crazy enough to try it .. .if it is still flying! .

Yes, bang for your buck on the SCs is massive for the VA flights, particuarly when connecting from another capital.

 

[stm1sydney]

if the KrisFlyer Gold lounge is anything to go by, it too could be a disappointment.

The KFG lounge in T3 is great.

 

[AustraliaPoochie]

MEL is definitely a better airport to transit.
D to D, or D to I, or vv or any combo.

 

[stratosp]

last week I completed my status run from Perth (to Tokyo). I had fun but I can't imagine anyone seriously taking that routing in buisness class for any other reason.

Final routing ended up being PER-MEL-CNS-HND-CNS-MEL-PER I was delayed a day coming back due to cyclone airport closure. they also changed my connecting flights to go through melbourne instead of sydney which shortened the layovers significantly which was helpful.

On the way to Tokyo they changed the aircraft on the redeye from Perth to a 737-700 without buisness so I asked for an earlier flight to Melbourne where I stayed the night.

I found the new buisness seats significantly more difficult to sleep in than the older ones because the headrests don't hold as much weight and straighten out with pressure. I think if I ever did it again I would also avoid the bulkhead as I found the legroom pretty tight (at least for how I sleep).

I am curious as to whether the economy seats would be better for sleeping in, as I have previously found VA economy seats fairly decent for sleeping.

The buisness class cabin was full on both legs between CNS-HND, and PER-MEL but there was a few free both times on the MEL-CNS legs. I was pretty sad to miss out on the Bento box option on the way to Tokyo (I was asked 6th and everyone else had requested it), but fortunately I got it on the return.

The return trip was far more exhausting than I expected, after getting basically no sleep on the HND-CNS segment doing the Cairns terminal transfer and sitting in the domestic terminal for 3 hours before another almost 8 hours of flying was super draining.

I was very tempted at Haneda after the flight was cancelled to see if I could cancel the entire return portion of the trip and instead book an award seat on ANA direct to Perth, it looks like there is good avalability for buisness class award seats from Japan to Perth/Sydney but they are only making them avaliable a few weeks in advance.

DSC Credits were posted correctly for MEL-CNS-HND-CNS-MEL, but for some reason PER-MEL, MEL-PER segments came through as 80SC each (when they should be 105SC) and DSC didnt post. No idea whats going on there but I guess I would need to get in to contact with VA to rectify?

I've also just finished a similar status run as part of the DSC promo: PER-BNE-CNS-HND-CNS-BNE-PER (1300SC)

I also didn't get the correct SCs and bonus SCs for either ends of the route PER-BNE, BNE-PER. 80SC was posted instead of 105SC for each. Probably an IT issue for complex routes? I called VA and they will manually credit the missing SCs after 4 weeks. It's only then I will reach beyond 1300SC and gift a companion Gold status. I suggest calling / emailing.

Some of my comments on this kind of run:

- I'm also not sure if the CNS-HND route will be considered seriously in Business class. I enjoyed the trip since my expectations are not that high. But for me, the lack of lounge access even in HND, the seats itself, and the CNS airport experience may need improvement or a more premium experience. For that price paid (even though we found a cheap one), I'll rather just wait for ANA to offer sale J seats which can be at a similar price point.

- All my flights have amazing and friendly crew. Especially the HND-CNS segment. Can't fault them!

- My check-in at PER airport required a higher up because of the international portion of the journey. They have no one in the premium check-in counters when I arrived, so I had to approach a staff at the self check-in kiosks.

- The food for all flights are all ok. Nothing flashy, nothing horrific. I've tried both the bento option (which is cute) as well as the International lunch option. Oh, and I also got asked last for the meals in one of my flights, so didn't get what I wanted. But it's a domestic flight so I didn't mind.

- Both my international flights have the new business seats with no dividers between Eco X. I found the seat hard to sleep on during the red eye. But that's just me with any other non-lie flat seats tbh.

 

[FrankC]

I've also just finished a similar status run as part of the DSC promo: PER-BNE-CNS-HND-CNS-BNE-HND (1300SC)

I also didn't get the correct SCs and bonus SCs for either ends of the route PER-BNE, BNE-PER. 80SC was posted instead of 105SC for each. Probably an IT issue for complex routes? I called VA and they will manually credit the missing SCs after 4 weeks. It's only then I will reach beyond 1300SC and gift a companion Gold status. I suggest calling / emailing.

Some of my comments on this kind of run:

- I'm also not sure if the CNS-HND route will be considered seriously in Business class. I enjoyed the trip since my expectations are not that high. But for me, the lack of lounge access even in HND, the seats itself, and the CNS airport experience may need improvement or a more premium experience. For that price paid (even though we found a cheap one), I'll rather just wait for ANA to offer sale J seats which can be at a similar price point.

- All my flights have amazing and friendly crew. Especially the HND-CNS segment. Can't fault them!

- My check-in at PER airport required a higher up because of the international portion of the journey. They have no one in the premium check-in counters when I arrived, so I had to approach a staff at the self check-in kiosks.

- The food for all flights are all ok. Nothing flashy, nothing horrific. I've tried both the bento option (which is cute) as well as the International lunch option. Oh, and I also got asked last for the meals in one of my flights, so didn't get what I wanted. But it's a domestic flight so I didn't mind.

- Both my international flights have the new business seats with no dividers between Eco X. I found the seat hard to sleep on during the red eye. But that's just me with any other non-lie flat seats tbh.

Which one do you prefer - the bento box or the other option?

 

[stratosp]

Which one do you prefer - the bento box or the other option?

I prefer the International option. Here's how they served them:

Menu


Bento option (CNS-HND)


International lunch/dinner option (the menu says lunch but it's also the menu for dinner) (HND-CNS)


Also adding the Sake drink, dessert, brekkie and amenity kit just as a reference.
Hope this is still on topic with this thread!

Sake & mixed nuts before Mains


Dessert


Brekkie


Amenity Kit - same contents as other amenity kits that VA offers

 

[Mattg]

I've also just finished a similar status run as part of the DSC promo: PER-BNE-CNS-HND-CNS-BNE-PER (1300SC)

I also didn't get the correct SCs and bonus SCs for either ends of the route PER-BNE, BNE-PER. 80SC was posted instead of 105SC for each. Probably an IT issue for complex routes? I called VA and they will manually credit the missing SCs after 4 weeks. It's only then I will reach beyond 1300SC and gift a companion Gold status. I suggest calling / emailing.

I suspect you received 80 status credits for PER-BNE on this itinerary because Velocity is treating is a domestic sector flown as part of an international itinerary. There is a different table for that (see below). However, that should only apply if the international journey is on a partner airline.

Virgin Australia

Earn Points with Virgin Australia and Partners, also earn status credit when travelling with eligible fare types. Offering include trans tasman flights, short haul and long haul flights and international long haul flights

www.velocityfrequentflyer.com

 

[stratosp]

I suspect you received 80 status credits for PER-BNE on this itinerary because Velocity is treating is a domestic sector flown as part of an international itinerary. There is a different table for that (see below). However, that should only apply if the international journey is on a partner airline.

Virgin Australia

Earn Points with Virgin Australia and Partners, also earn status credit when travelling with eligible fare types. Offering include trans tasman flights, short haul and long haul flights and international long haul flights

www.velocityfrequentflyer.com

View attachment 360526

I've been wondering where the system is picking up the specific number and that might be it! The VA reps assured me the SCs posted are indeed incorrect and they will manually add the missing SC and the DSC in a few weeks.

 

[PERLHR]

I prefer the International option. Here's how they served them:

Menu
View attachment 360386

Bento option (CNS-HND)
View attachment 360425

International lunch/dinner option (the menu says lunch but it's also the menu for dinner) (HND-CNS)
View attachment 360402

Also adding the Sake drink, dessert, brekkie and amenity kit just as a reference.
Hope this is still on topic with this thread!

Sake & mixed nuts before Mains
View attachment 360403

Dessert
View attachment 360413

Brekkie
View attachment 360412

Amenity Kit - same contents as other amenity kits that VA offers
View attachment 360411

Lovely review and informative for us doing it in 2024. Thankyou.

Post automatically merged: Dec 23, 2023

Than

I've also just finished a similar status run as part of the DSC promo: PER-BNE-CNS-HND-CNS-BNE-PER (1300SC)

I also didn't get the correct SCs and bonus SCs for either ends of the route PER-BNE, BNE-PER. 80SC was posted instead of 105SC for each. Probably an IT issue for complex routes? I called VA and they will manually credit the missing SCs after 4 weeks. It's only then I will reach beyond 1300SC and gift a companion Gold status. I suggest calling / emailing.

Some of my comments on this kind of run:

- I'm also not sure if the CNS-HND route will be considered seriously in Business class. I enjoyed the trip since my expectations are not that high. But for me, the lack of lounge access even in HND, the seats itself, and the CNS airport experience may need improvement or a more premium experience. For that price paid (even though we found a cheap one), I'll rather just wait for ANA to offer sale J seats which can be at a similar price point.

- All my flights have amazing and friendly crew. Especially the HND-CNS segment. Can't fault them!

- My check-in at PER airport required a higher up because of the international portion of the journey. They have no one in the premium check-in counters when I arrived, so I had to approach a staff at the self check-in kiosks.

- The food for all flights are all ok. Nothing flashy, nothing horrific. I've tried both the bento option (which is cute) as well as the International lunch option. Oh, and I also got asked last for the meals in one of my flights, so didn't get what I wanted. But it's a domestic flight so I didn't mind.

- Both my international flights have the new business seats with no dividers between Eco X. I found the seat hard to sleep on during the red eye. But that's just me with any other non-lie flat seats tbh.

Thankyou for the review. Most informative.

 

[trisreed]

VA77 diverted to NRT

Looks like 8IC is making an unscheduled visit to NRT due to the incident at HND. While far from the most important consideration at the moment I imagine this will wreck havoc with the schedule!

 

[AIRwin]

Looks like 8IC is making an unscheduled visit to NRT due to the incident at HND. While far from the most important consideration at the moment I imagine this will wreck havoc with the schedule!

It is showing a rescheduled departure time of 00:55 out of HND

 

[ben95]

It is showing a rescheduled departure time of 00:55 out of HND

Rather optimistic I’d say. I’d be surprised if HND reopens for tonight.

 

[twinaisle]

Rather optimistic I’d say. I’d be surprised if HND reopens for tonight.

Earthquake.. tsunami.. godzilla.. whatever. It's already back up and running.

 

[justinbrett]

Earthquake.. tsunami.. godzilla.. whatever. It's already back up and running.

No it’s not. Airfield is closed.

Only way VA78 is departing tonight is on a bus to NRT.

 

[antycbr]

Earthquake.. tsunami.. godzilla.. whatever. It's already back up and running.

No available ARFF will mean the airport remains closed.